Red Lightning Detective Services
'Polaris Eridanus & Davus Fulmen, Distant Lands, Several Months Ago' It had been a long week stuck in a small harbor town, somewhere insignificant far across the world. A never ending set of dead ends for a town tightly held within death's embrace. It had started small, a few more animal carcasses along the roads. Sometimes passing hunters would up the death toll. Or a temporary sickness would pass through, or the weather would turn. Life could be cruel, and sudden occasional death was hardly a surprise. And then the poorest among them vanished first. In the night, without a word. Such was the existing discord in the town, that the elite barely noticed the missing transients. It was only when the first respectable families starting having casualties, that helped was called. Neither one could recall how it had really started, the investigations. Sometime after the war of the Interlopers, Davus and Polaris had found their souls permanently intertwined. Though each was free to be independent of the other at will, fate always pushed them back together. It was surely a phenomenon having to do with the now dead witch, Rhunerys, but neither one cared to find out. They had grown to accept the universe’s command that they should be allies in life and death. And so when death came upon a village in need of help only Davus and Polaris could provide, refusal was not an option. Now the town was, for the most part, rather wealthy. Something perhaps more influential than it should have been, it had kept Davus and Polaris around even as it seemed like the very people who hired them wanted the pair to leave. “I told you already, we are going as fast as you’ll let us.” Davus had mastered the art of being terrible at masking his anger. Polaris, moderately mild mannered by comparison, quickly took over. “What my partner here is saying is, when can we be given access to the catacombs? Everything we’ve found points us there.” Polaris had his best diplomatic voice on, but the old woman behind the counter was a wall. “Two weeks you’ve been here, and you’ve done NOTHING!” She wailed. “Two weeks?” Davus jumped back in, making sure to remind himself that he wasn’t a killer of innocents anymore. And despite having a punchable face, and a voice like a banshee, the old woman was still technically innocent. “It’s been five days, and for the first two we were forced to answer your questions and stay confined to one building. This is starting to feel more like a kidnapping than an investigation. What happens when we try to leave? Because I promise you, nothing can stop us from leaving when we choose.” “Excuse us.” Polaris guided Davus outside, where a thunderstorm had started to pick up. “Is this you?” Polaris asked. “As much as I’d love to blow this place up, no. This is just the luck they have.” Davus remarked. Polaris frequently chose to be the voice of reason, but was never one to always follow the same path. “We have to go to the catacombs.” Polaris tone was clear enough. Davus nodded in agreement, and no further discussion was needed. Something was clearly wrong with the entire situation. Neither one had found a single individual that actually wanted them in the town, and the original invitation had come from a postman that they had never seen before, or since. Seeking permission had gone from a necessity to a waste of time. Together they walked the short distance across town to the main catacombs entrance. It had up until that moment been guarded by two large armored men. They were nowhere to be seen, the only evidence that they ever existed being the set of faded footprints on the ground. “Look.” Polaris paused and pointed to the small field opposite the catacombs entrance. It was a tiny gravesite made long before the town had been built. But there had been no tombstones on it when Davus and Polaris had first arrived. Every single stone had a picture of the deceased upon it. A moving picture, as if the stone were wearing the face of the body in the ground beneath it. “Why are there tombstones for these people?” Davus asked. “All of them vanished or died this week. Nobody has left or arrived into town the past couple days. Who put these here?” 'Davus & Polaris, Distant Lands, Several Months Ago' The largest addition to Davus’ personality and social capability was deeply tied into an unflinching and unending analysis of his present self versus his past self. An unhealthy obsession in the eyes of many, but one which also served as a crucial anchor to how he defined himself in the present. By always staring at who he used to be, Davus extracted a certain kind of steadfastness in his modern self, one that could stand up against the memories of his old life and wisely look down upon them as a necessary mistake. He spent quite a bit less effort analyzing Polaris, having grown trusting of him, but not exactly close. Two quasi immortal undead ancients. Neither one particularly interested in recognizing their teamwork as friendship, even if it held all the trappings of grumpy old pals doing the jobs no one else could. Davus could have dug deep and perhaps found a sense of comfort in that kind of friendship, but it seemed like that would get in the way of the investigation. “Look.” Polaris waved a hand toward one of the tombstones, and Davus watched as it passed completely through it. These were fakes, apparitions or projections of some kind. That half answered the question of who built them. Nobody. But they were still being created using some kind of magic or technology, so it wasn’t really nobody. “This better not be Sirius.” Davus remarked. Polaris’ eyes voiced agreement, but he stayed silent. In that moment the rain paused, and the clouds scattered. It was rather unnatural feeling, so Davus gave Polaris a look to indicate that he still was not the culprit for the storms behavior. Polaris didn’t receive the information, as he was busy scrutinizing the ‘tombstones’. “Davus these things are watching us. These are the missing people. They’ve been trapped in these forms by someone.” Polaris sounded particularly disgusted by the torturous imprisonment. That was of no surprise, and Davus felt the same. This was nothing short of true hell. Each of them carefully walked around the group of fake tombstones, doing their best to observe the faces on each one, while minimizing eye contact. It felt unnatural to look into their eyes. “This one.” Polaris stopped and nudged one of the stones. It was tangible, unlike the others. The image upon it did not move. Davus still didn’t remember seeing it before though. “Help me with this.” He leaned down and helped Polaris move the tombstone back. Davus was relived to see the hidden stairwell before them. The entire investigation seemed ready to fall apart, and this was the first positive sign in ages. Thunderclouds formed above, catching Polaris’ attention immediately. “Now I know that one is you.” Davus didn’t need to answer, they both knew it to be true. Together they descended into the tomb, finding it to be a rather steep and dark passage. Davus waved a hand, sending a group of sparking orbs along the cavern ceilings, floors and walls, illuminating the path. “I don’t think this is connected to the catacombs. I investigated it pretty thoroughly the first day.” Polaris remarked, catching Davus off guard. “When exactly did you manage to pull that off?” Davus asked. “I found the time.” Polaris replied. “Speaking of time...What do you think this is doing here.” Before the pair, titled on its side and cracked, sat a massive six foot tall hourglass. A small bit of sand remained within, but the majority appeared to have spilled out and been lost. On the glass was a faded etching of a timestone, and below that some ancient hylian text. “Timelock Chamber.” Davus translated aloud. “This was holding something captive.” He got up close and put some of the sand on his fingertip, and felt it go numb immediately. “I know this. Sirius used something similar to immobilize people, but this isn’t his style. But someone or something was definitely being held here.” “Yeah...I think you’re right.” Polaris motioned for Davus to look down the caverns ahead. The walls and floor were smeared with blood and the remnants of chains. There were also torn bits of uniform similar to the one worn by the catacomb guards. “Found the guards.” Davus said. “I think this counts as an invitation.” Polaris said, walking ahead. Davus leaned down, checking if the blood was from the guards or something else. Best he could tell was either a combination of the two, or they were some very sick guards. He looked up and saw that Polaris had stopped following the trail, and was clutching something in his hands. “What’s that?” Davus asked. Polaris held his hound out, revealing a blood soaked green hat. One of a very particular kind. “Why would that be here?” Polaris shrugged and the two continued around the corner. “Wait.” A female voice called out from behind, triggering them both to turn around and assume battle stances. Realizing it was a familiar face, the immediately relaxed. It was Severa, an old ally to both of them and a bit of an oddity herself. For one thing, she claimed to have no last name (something Davus knew to be a lie) though he admittedly did the same thing. It was a convenient way to let go of the parts of the past you hate, and keep the tiny bits worth keeping. “You guys made this easy for me, but I get the sense you have no idea what we’re about to face.” For once, Polaris stepped up to respond first instead of Davus. “And how long do we have listen to you gloat before you let us in on your secrets?” “Free this time.” She smirked. “Let me see that hat.” Dropping the false tension, Polaris handed Severa the hat. It wasn’t the first time the three had accidentally worked together. Severa had a pair of silver gauntlets on, which began to softly glow in a purple hue as she took the hat from Polaris. The blood immediately drained from it. Neither Davus or Polaris cared to find out what powers Severa had access to to accomplish such a feat. Surely not blood magic given her background. Surely. “Look at that.” She pointed to a small signature that was woven into the hat. Davus smirked when he read it. It was just a name, but one he hadn’t seen in a very long time. He hadn’t even been sure if it was a real memory, or some fragment of a memory lost to the rivers of time. “You know him?” Severa asked. “Yes, I do.” All three paused after Davus answered, as rough heavy breathing filled the room. A quick glance around confirmed it wasn’t any of the three, so they cautiously began eyeing each shadowy corner of the room for their obvious fourth guest. “I remember you, Davus.” A hollow, hateful, wooden voice rolled through the tunnels. It felt ancient and heavy, instilling exhaustion in any that heard it. The owner of the voice crept out of the shadows, revealing a monstrous creature that seemed to have started the transformation into a skull kid before abruptly halting. Davus stayed focused on the investigations primary goal. “Are you responsible for the vanishings from town?” Davus asked. The creature cocked its head to the side and made an effort to laugh, but came across as little more than a hacking coughing noise. “We’ll take that as a yes.” Polaris chimed in. The creature answered with more failed laughter, lumbering closer and raising itself up, revealing its height to be near seven feet tall. “It really is nice to see you again, Koro." 'Davus - Catacombs of a Distant Land - Many Months Ago' All eyes were on Davus. The tension suggested a fight, but Davus made no movements to such ends. Instead, he relaxed his stance and took a step forward casually. “Who do you think I am?” He asked the question earnestly, something that this monstrosity calling itself Koro didn’t seem to expect or immediately understand. His hacking cough rose from the silence, leading into a pained question in response. “The Feared.” “Hey. You want to explain what’s going on here?” Severa asked, lacing the tension with urgency it most certainly didn’t need. “I was told to find something named Koro-” She gestured towards him. “And you two clearly have a history I didn’t know about.” Davus put a hand up to silence her, rightfully feeling her immediate reactionary death-stare. Severa had known Davus in his more murderous days, and had never stopped watching for signs of his old self. Davus lowered his hand, and remained silent for a moment. Severa sighed in exasperation. “Just talk.” “I don’t go by The Feared anymore.” Davus said. “It’s just Davus now.” Koro repeated his now trademark hacking laugh. “You think you can just change your name and be done with it?” Koro replied. Davus was grateful a fight hadn’t already broken out, but felt like time was running out on the real mystery. He sensed that Polaris was thinking the same thing, looking back towards him. “This isn’t adding up, Davus.” Polaris commented. He was right. Koro was a monstrous being now, but he didn’t show signs of a fight. He didn’t even appear to be especially aggressive, despite the situation feeling to be on the cusp of something that could only end poorly. “Are you actually responsible for the townsfolk vanishing?” Polaris pressed the question again. This time Koro seemed to be taking the situation more seriously. “No. I just got here.” He answered sternly. Severa, Davus, and Polaris all exchanged looks of concern and confusion. “You didn’t kill the guards...did you?” Davus asked, betraying his concerns. Koro remained calm. “No. I was in a forest searching for a way out of this form, and something attacked me. Then I was here. You are the first people I’ve seen.” Koro motioned to the hat. “Can I have that?” Davus handed the green kokiri cap over, treating the group to an instantaneous and unexpected transformation. In a flash of light, Koro went from his monstrous form to that of your typical Kokiri. “Magic may have taken my body from me, but this hat is enchanted now to grant me my original form.” Koro’s eyes felt empty to Davus as he spoke. What the Kokiri described sounded an awful lot like mask magic. But this was the face of Koro for sure, begging the question of just what twisted work was really going on. “I feel like we’ve met.” Polaris remarked to Koro. “But I just can’t place when.” “That happens when you live through as many apocalypses as we have.” Koro, dead as his eyes were, seemed remarkably cheerier in his new old form. Not just cheery, but helpful. “Something else did this.” He remarked about the blood stains on the ground. They all glanced at the stasis device that had been broken out of. “Why is it placed there?” Davus asked aloud. Polaris was two steps ahead, back examining the device again. “We’ve been looking at this backwards. This wasn’t broken out of. It was broken into. It’s not a timelock chamber, or any kind of prison. It’s a door.” Polaris rather bravely stuck an arm into the ‘door’, its true nature as a portal was immediately obvious as the arm vanished. “Here’s your guards.” Koro called from the other end the chamber. “They dragged themselves here, but no sign of anything else.” The sounds of slow clapping filled the chamber, a sultry smooth yet still still irritating voice laughing alongside it. All four gathered around the newly discovered portal door, looking around for the source of the voice. “You’re in over your heads on this one.” Accompanying the softly spoken gloat was a much more powerful torrent of water, catching all four off guard and slamming them into the ground. Severa was the first to her feet, rushing towards the sound of the voice. “Oh no, no clever lines from this one.” Another torrent of water lashed out, this time in the shape of a whip. It wrapped itself around Severa and pinned her to the wall. “I’m sure this is very frustrating, but our little battle is not meant for this moment. None of them could see the owner of the voice, but could feel her presence as the water rushed past them into the portal. The air calmed, and the water evaporated as its magical owner was no longer present. The four composed themselves, and Koro was the first to speak up. “Who the hell was that?” “Her name is Masa.” Severa sounded irritated just saying the name. “And this is just got a whole lot more complicated.” 'Davus, Catacombs of a Distant Land, Months Ago' Before Masa’s attack, Koro had redundantly pointed out the guards position, something Davus couldn’t stop thinking about. Something had been different about it. He studied the location of the bodies carefully, realizing after a few moments that it looked as if they’d been moved. Davus decided to speak up. “Polaris. The guards weren’t completely dead, or possibly something started animating their bodies if they were dead.” Davus could tell Polaris was thinking the same thing. He looked over to Koro and clarified. “When you spotted the guards, it was after we had already found them. But they were in a different position when you saw them.” “Maybe the water moved them?” Severa suggested. “No, the water didn’t extend that far into the room. The mage controlled it very precisely.” Polaris replied. “This isn’t adding up.” “Shocking.” Davus quipped. “And what can you tell us about Masa?” Davus asked, turning back to Severa. “I don’t really know where she’s from, certainly not this world or era. She might be from another reality entirely, another dimension. It’s a complete mystery. Whatever gods made her, well, they hold no voice in this land. I’ve fought her once, and I lost badly. I survived because she made the mistake of thinking I was dead. I’ll tell you the rest some other time. The point is, she’s dangerous and could take us all on collectively. “No, I don’t think she can.” Polaris replied. Davus nodded. “We are stronger.” They said in unison. It was moderately creepy. “Oh good, we’ll just defeat her with the power of arrogance.” Severa snapped. “I’m not spending any more time arguing.” Davus said flatly. He found himself with too many pieces too quickly. This could not be a coincidence, the town needing help, the vanishings, the sudden and abrupt negative attitude shift of the townspeople towards Davus and Polaris. And now Davus just happened to stumble across Koro, who also claimed to be here by chance. And now this Masa individual was involved somehow. “We can’t waste more time here.” Davus gestured to the portal that they previously believed to be a stasis chamber. “Let’s go.” He led the group through, bracing himself for the unknown. There was little to see. Some shriveled empty husks of long dead trees. Cracked, dried ground littered with dust and the occasional unidentifiable bone. No evidence of a single living thing, except for themselves and presumably Masa. “Oh…” Davus wasn’t sure if he muttered it or someone else did, but all eyes were fixed in the same direction all the same. The sun was burned down to a tiny glow, and the moon scattered across the heavens in pieces. Shooting up hundreds of feet into the air was a black spire that looked as if it was draining the sun of its life. “Tell me again why you were hunting this Masa.” Polaris asked Severa. “Why because I owed her a favor.” Severa’s tone dramatically changed, and Davus didn’t need more than a half-second to suss it out. But his denial was stronger and he refused to acknowledge what he already knew. He watched with bottled confusion and rage as Severa walked away. Davus had known Severa her entire life, during a time when he skewed noticeably further closer to objective evil. He had attempted to turn her to darkness, corrupt her soul. It had failed, and he was in the end murdered by Polaris of all people. In that hour of death, Davus was reborn in more ways than one, entering into a life of eternal questions. And now one new question: Why was Severa seemingly about to betray the group? How could someone fighting for the light their whole life turn away without explanation? Davus realized the same question had surely been asked about himself. How could one turn from the darkness after embodying it? He never did find an answer. “What is this?” Polaris remained calm, but warning entered his words. “Oh my dear general.” Masa said, casually referencing another era of his life. “Did you really think it was wise to ally yourself with the daughter of Empress Vera? You've been played for the fools you are.” While Masa conversed with Polaris, Davus stared deeply into Severa’s eyes. He searched, very close to desperately, for evidence it was all some plan. Evidence that it was a long con on Vera. He didn’t find any. The woman who had helped steer him to a new life now chosen his old one. “You won’t recruit us.” Davus said flatly to Masa, still refusing to directly acknowledge that Severa had just casually switched sides. “We’ll never work for Vera.” Masa put a hand to her chest in feigned offense. “You will die for her cause, one way or another.” __FORCETOC__